In compliance with U.S. Coast Guard regulations, boaters are required to display navigation lights from sunset to sunrise and during other times of reduced visibility. The display of navigation lights is required so that operators of marine craft can easily determine the position and direction of movement of other boats in proximity to theirs. Typical navigation lights include red and green bow lights and a white light either at the stern of the marine craft or at another position aft of the bow lights and at a certain elevation. Typically, the white navigation light is mounted at the end of a mast which projects above the boat hull. The light mast when not in use is usually stowed inside the boat while the boat is operating during daylight hours or when the boat is tied to a birth. At such time as operation of the boat falls within the times mandated by the U.S. Coast Guard regulations, the boat operator removes the light mast from its storage location and inserts the mast in a mounting base affixed to the hull of the boat.
In general, these navigation light masts are configured with a light at one end of the mast and at an opposite end of the mast is an electrical connector with contacts for mating with pins positioned in the bottom of the mast mounting base. There is more than one manufacturer of light masts and hull mounted mast mounting bases, and while each manufacturer's mast and support is conceptually similar, there is no standard by which the mast and bases are designed. Therefore, a boat owner and operator, in the event of loss or destruction of a light mast, must procure a new mast which is specifically designed to mate with the particular mast mounting base on the hull of the boat. Additionally, each base and mast combination incorporates a mode of keying to ensure the mast is properly aligned with the electrical pins in the base for mating therewith and also includes a retention mechanism to secure the mast within the support to prevent the inadvertent removal thereof.
Because the navigation light and mast assembly is not a permanent fixture of the boat hull and is repeatedly installed and removed from its receptacle, the mast and light are subject to high instances of loss and damage requiring the replacement thereof. Since there is no current standard for navigation light mast supports, in order to replace a lost or damaged light mast a boat owner must either find a replacement mast from the same manufacturer as the one damaged or lost or he must replace the mounting base in addition to the mast. Until now there has been no single mast that would universally fit all of or at least the majority of the support mounts permanently attached to boat hulls. A possible solution to this problem is to manufacture a variety of replacement masts wherein each of the masts is designed and manufactured to fit a particular support mount. However, this is not an economically practical solution, as it would significantly increase manufacturing, packaging, and inventory costs. Accordingly, there is a need for a navigation light and mast assembly which can be universally installed in a variety of navigation light mast mounting bases to permit boat owners and operators the ability to conveniently replace a lost or damaged navigation light mast without having to determine a specific configuration with which to match or to search for a replacement mast manufactured by a specific supplier.